

Robert Wright's Nonzero
Nonzero
Conversations with a series of people who have nothing in common except that program host Robert Wright is curious about what they’re thinking. www.nonzero.org
Episodes
Mentioned books

Oct 27, 2023 • 55min
Is the War Turning against Ukraine? (Robert Wright & Leonid Ragozin)
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org1:18 Why Leonid considers his nationality “journalist” 8:40 How the West alienated Russia 14:36 Are Russia’s pro-Ukraine “liberals” actually far right? 25:30 How Putin is responding to Israel's war on Hamas 35:25 Are western experts more clear-minded about Israel-Hamas than Russia-Ukraine? 39:47 Is Ukraine at risk of losing significant amounts of territory? 50:51 Heading to OvertimeRobert Wright (Bloggingheads.tv, The Evolution of God, Nonzero, Why Buddhism Is True) and Leonid Ragozin (Rest of World, West of Providence, Lonely Planet). Recorded October 26, 2023.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

Oct 25, 2023 • 1h 17min
A Debate on Israel-Palestine (Robert Wright & Eli Lake)
2:06 Why hasn’t the ground invasion happened yet? 8:22 Do conditions in Gaza make terrorism more likely? 16:37 Palestinian violence compared to Israeli violence 27:05 Did Israel really offer the Palestinians a state two decades ago? 32:43 Does Hamas have much support in the West? 39:55 What should be done about Hamas? 51:09 Israel’s blockade of Gaza and strategy of massive retaliation 58:27 Indignities suffered by Palestinians in the West Bank 1:08:21 Should West Bank Palestinians focus on demanding the vote? 1:13:30 Eli’s growing interest in the deep stateRobert Wright (Bloggingheads.tv, The Evolution of God, Nonzero, Why Buddhism Is True) and Eli Lake (The New York Sun, Commentary, Clements Center, The Re-Education). Recorded October 24, 2023.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe

Oct 21, 2023 • 36min
Earthling Unplugged: Why Israel’s anti-Hamas strategy is failing
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.orgRecorded October 20, 2023.

Oct 20, 2023 • 1h 3min
Wokeness and Israel-Palestine (Robert Wright & Meghan Daum)
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org0:34 The Unspeakeasy, the newest arm of the Meghan-industrial complex 7:53 Meghan’s prestigious place in Parrot Room history 11:20 Has wokeness won? 19:48 How common is anti-semitism on the left? 32:40 Israel-Palestine’s destructive non-zero-sum dynamics 50:02 Meghan’s highly therapeutic Unspeakeasy retreatsRobert Wright (Bloggingheads.tv, The Evolution of God, Nonzero, Why Buddhism Is True) and Meghan Daum (https://meghandaum.substack.com, https://aspecialplace.substack.com, https://www.theunspeakeasy.com). Recorded October 19, 2023.Meghan's Twitter: https://twitter.com/meghan_daum

Oct 16, 2023 • 1h 8min
Israel, Hamas, and the Laws of War (Robert Wright & Sarah Leah Whitson)
2:05 Israel’s military plans for northern Gaza 5:05 How does international law apply to Israel and Hamas? 16:15 The first casualty of war is truth 24:50 Do Israel’s actions in Gaza constitute ethnic cleansing? 32:06 The evolving definition of genocide 39:36 How the US and Israel helped Hamas seize power 50:18 America’s ill-fated push for Arab-Israeli normalization 53:17 The hazards of overreacting to Hamas’s attack 1:01:26 How western media has covered the conflict so farRobert Wright (Bloggingheads.tv, The Evolution of God, Nonzero, Why Buddhism Is True) and Sarah Leah Whitson (Democracy for the Arab World Now). Recorded October 16, 2023.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe

Oct 14, 2023 • 1h 8min
Earthling Unplugged: Israel, Hamas, and Biden's Failed Foreign Policy
Recorded October 13, 2023. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe

Oct 13, 2023 • 1h 1min
Elon Musk and Other Odd People (Robert Wright & Paul Bloom)
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org0:33 Paul’s humble new ventures with Substack and Nonzero 6:07 Israel-Palestine, exploitative media, and the pitfalls of empathy 19:04 Paul’s plaudits for Mickey and the Parrot Room 22:11 Elon Musk and Derek Parfit: compare and contrast 29:24 Is there a method to Musk’s mad genius? 36:01 The radical rationalism that forged SBF 43:07 How real is implicit bias? 55:48 How real is SBF? 58:25 Heading to OvertimeRobert Wright (Bloggingheads.tv, The Evolution of God, Nonzero, Why Buddhism Is True) and Paul Bloom (https://smallpotatoes.paulbloom.net, University of Toronto, The Sweet Spot, Against Empathy). Recorded October 13, 2023.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

Oct 9, 2023 • 1h 16min
Israel, Palestine, and US Foreign Policy (Robert Wright, Derek Davison, and Daniel Bessner)
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org(Overtime segment and American Prestige discount subscription link available to paid subscribers below the paywall.)0:33 Nonzero/American Prestige cocktail with a hybrid episode twist 2:23 Was Hamas’s attack a predictable response to conditions in Gaza? 14:43 Did Biden’s foreign policy make the attack more likely? 25:20 America’s unstrategic Middle East strategy 30:35 Can anything good come out of the current crisis? 39:56 The Nonzero/American Prestige crossover arc 42:39 How to stay sane as a critic of US foreign policy 48:13 Biden vs Trump: Who’s the lesser evil on foreign policy? 52:12 Strains within the restrainer coalition 57:37 Is there any hope left for international law? 1:07:19 Bob’s pitch for (sober) AI alarmism 1:12:20 Heading to Overtime—and a special offer for listeners!Robert Wright (Bloggingheads.tv, The Evolution of God, Nonzero, Why Buddhism Is True), Derek Davison (Foreign Exchanges, American Prestige, Discontents), and Daniel Bessner (American Prestige, University of Washington). Recorded October 05, 2023.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPodsAmerican Prestige on Substack:

Oct 7, 2023 • 1h 1min
Biden’s Big Problems: Ukraine and the Border (Robert Wright & Mickey Kaus)
1:52 Important reminder about the Friday podcast 3:33 Sam Bankman-Fried’s plan to stop Trump 8:20 Biden’s new policy: Build the wall! 17:28 Why is life expectancy dropping for some demographics in America? 20:07 Should Democrats have helped Kevin McCarthy remain speaker? 27:28 The Blob starts to think like Bob on Russia-Ukraine 34:45 Should the US impose conditions on aid to Ukraine? 45:08 What war with China over Taiwan would look like 49:12 Parrot Room preview: McCarthyism at the news outlet Semafor. Michael Lewis’s new book on Sam Bankman-Fried. Parrot reminiscing. Evolution and homosexuality. Christopher Rufo defends NixonRobert Wright (Bloggingheads.tv, The Evolution of God, Nonzero, Why Buddhism Is True) and Mickey Kaus (kausfiles, The End of Equality). Recorded October 06, 2023.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe

Oct 3, 2023 • 58min
What Would a War over Taiwan Look Like? (Robert Wright & Lyle Goldstein)
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org(Overtime segment available to paid subscribers below the paywall.)2:16 Has Biden abandoned longstanding US policy on Taiwan? 9:31 The sobering results of recent US-China war games 19:33 Would China ever accept defeat in Taiwan? 28:17 Why the US might bomb Taiwan’s microchip factories 34:44 How war over Taiwan could unfold 48:33 Lyle: DC think tanks are underestimating China's military 55:43 Heading to OvertimeRobert Wright (Bloggingheads.tv, The Evolution of God, Nonzero, Why Buddhism Is True) and Lyle Goldstein (Defense Priorities, Watson Institute, Meeting China Halfway). Recorded October 02, 2023.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods